In the second part of our exclusive interview with Britain's World Cup winning mountainbike downhill star Gee Atherton, we find out what it's really like to be a part of the most successful family in the sport and he also tells us about an eyewatering injury...
What is the most enjoyable aspect of downhill for you?
When I started it was just about having fun and I think the adrenaline aspect attracted me a lot. Even now it’s similar, when I’m riding and just having fun it’s that feeling of pushing myself and trying bigger stuff and battling with my brother to do better things. I think the feeling of why I ride is very different to the feeling of why I race – the fun aspect is definitely what attracts me to the riding.
Do you have any advice for youngsters who want to follow in your footsteps and take up downhill?
The most useful thing that someone told me when I was much younger and starting to race was to focus on riding well rather than trying to race. At the time I wasn’t really sure what they meant, but after racing for a few years now I can see youngsters who are focussing too much on the racing and their riding suffers. If you focus on riding well and riding smoothly, the racing will take care of itself. If you can ride well you’ll race well in turn, so it’s important to make sure you don’t get focussed on the wrong thing I think.
Do you think that Olympic status for the sport would encourage more kids to take it up?
I think that Olympic status would help the sport a lot. I think it would boost the name of the sport hugely and bring investors in perhaps and that would help a huge amount, but then in BMX I started to notice a bit that parents were pushing their kids into it for almost the wrong reasons. They’re pushing their kids into it because they want an Olympic champ in eight or 10 years, rather than because the kid could have a bit of fun and do something that they’re going to enjoy and I don’t think that’s necessarily a good thing. I think it would help the sport hugely at the top level, but as for bringing more kids into the sport, I’m not really sure.
What with riding for the same team and starring in your own TV show, you spend a lot of time with your family – do you still have fights?
Rachel and I do. Rachel and I fight a lot. She’s got a very fiery temperament and we definitely clash. My brother’s pretty mellow and he’ll get on with anyone. Neither me or Rachel really argue with him, but Rach and I have our differences. We always make up – I love her to bits and we’re the best of friends, but we definitely have moments when we clash. We spend so much time in each other’s pockets that there’s bound to be times when it hasn’t gone well and we’re not happy. Dan and I have the occasional scraps and fights, but they don’t seem to get as serious as Rach and I [laughs].
Sven Martin
Who’s the most competitive Atherton?
Hard to say really. We’ve got different aspects that we’re competitive in. Racing-wise I’d say Rach. She’s hugely competitive. There have been times when she’s been injured and out for months, and come back and got a second place, which is awesome but she’ll be so pissed off and so angry with herself and she’ll just lose it. It’s the same mentality that makes her so good in the sport that gets to her when she’s not winning races.
Does the fact that you guys all have each other to train with and back each other up give you an advantage over the other riders?
I think it’s definitely been a big part of our success because we’ve always had each other there to push each other and Rach has always been trying to keep up with Dan and I and when I was younger I was trying to keep up with Dan. We’re always pushing each other further and it’s always there whatever we’re doing.
Sven Martin
Your brother Dan suffered a fairly serious injury earlier this summer, how is his recovery coming along? Will he be back on a bike soon?
Dan’s getting better. I’d like to say that he’s perfect, but he’s not quite there. He’s still in the neck brace. He’s definitely starting to feel the strain of spending three months in a head brace. He’s stuck at home and he’s a bit bored, but he’s doing good, recovering well and the doctors are all really pleased with him and are saying 100 percent recovery, so it is good news. He is on the mend and I think in another month he’ll be out of the metal headgear and that’s going to be a big step for him I think.
'Dan's getting better... it's good news'
You say he’s a bit bored. How keen is he to get back out riding again?
He can’t wait to get back on his bike. Even after a big knock like that he still can’t wait to get back riding again and having fun. Initially in the first few weeks he didn’t even want to talk about riding again and even after a month he wasn’t looking forward to getting back on a bike, but now he’s starting to get that that itch again.
What’s the worst injury you’ve ever suffered?
Time-out wise it was when I had a dislocated shoulder. I tried to rehab it rather than get an operation and it worked, but it took a long time to recover from and even now I’m still feeling the repercussions. Worst injury at the time was when I rode out of the workshop at night and into the yard just to test this bike that I’d built up and to make sure it was right for the next day and before the light flicked in the yard on I rode straight into a digger bucket that my brother had left on the floor, going quite quick and I just slammed my nuts onto the handlebars of my bike. My balls were up to seriously the size of a couple of coconuts and so that was the worst injury that I’ve ever had [laughs].
'My balls were up to seriously the size of a couple of coconuts'
You’re World Cup champion, the star of your own TV show and you’re still only 25, what’s next for Gee Atherton?
I wish I knew, but more racing definitely. That’s where I’m at at the moment – all about the racing and the competitive side. I want to get more titles and more championships and push the sport as well. That’s a big thing for me. I want to help the sport grow and achieve its full potential and I think having Red Bull there to help us by doing things like The Atherton Project and putting on the events is going to help a lot because we’re showing people what the downhill side of mountain biking is all about and reaching an audience we otherwise probably wouldn’t have.
Find out more about Gee here or click here to watch the latest episode of The Atherton Project
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